Card playing and instruction device



Nov. 29, 1966 R. E. SHILLING 3,287,826

CARD PLAYING AND INSTRUCTION DEVICE Filed July 17, 1964 n" iiiji lllllll 5.1;

h lillllll INVENTO il /urns;

United States Patent F 3,287,826 CARD PLAYING AND INSTRUCTION DEVICE Robert E. Shilling, 10111 England Ave., Inglewood, Calif. Filed July 17, 1964, Ser. No. 383,308 Claims. (Cl. 35-8) The present invention relates generally to game boards, and is more particularly concerned with game apparatus for use in connection with card games, such as bridge or the like, wherein practice hands may be selectively set up and played for practice or for instruction purposes in a manner simulating play in a regular card game.

It is one object of the invention to provide a game board of simple construction by means of which representative card hands, in bridge and other card games, may be selectively set up and replayed either for studying different techniques, or for the instruction of others.

A further object is to provide means for quickly setting up, easily playing and quickly resetting card hands so that they may be played repeatedly.

Another object is to provide improved apparatus of the character described wherein the devices having the card insigne thereon, which are not utilized in setting up the card hands for play, can quickly and easily be locked in inoperable position.

It is also an object of the invention to provide in a card game apparatus, unique card insigne devices that are so arranged that the devices which have been used in playing the hands may be reset quickly for repeat playing, simply by a tilting movement of the apparatus.

Further objects of the invention will be brought out in the following part of the specification, wherein detailed description is for the purpose of fully disclosing the invention without placing limitations thereon.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, which are for illustrative purposes only:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of card playing apparatus according to the present invention, and showing the general arrangement of the card insigne devices as set up for playing four card hands;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view showing the operative relationship of the insigne bearing devices and associated locking means, taken substantially on line 22 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a transverse section of the apparatus, taken substantially on line 3-3 of FIG. 2.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, the apparatus is shown as comprising a substantially rectangular shallow box-like structure 10 which may be formed of any suitable material such as metal, plastic or the like. In the disclosed construction, the structure 10 is formed with a top wall 11 which forms a playing board and from the periphery of which depending side walls 12 extend to form an open bottom which is shown as being closed by a bottom closure panel 13.

As shown in FIG. 1, the top wall 11 which provides the playing board is provided with four groups of aligned rectangular slots or openings 14, each of the groups forming a conventional playing station which may be identified in conventional manner as north, eastfi south and west. Also, the slots 14 at each playing station may be individually identified by appropriate suit indicating indicia' 15, such as spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs.

Each of the slots 14 has mounted therein 13 aligned digitally movable devices 16 which each carry a card insigne such as indicated at 17, the insigne for the suit of each slot being in the same sequence from left to right. At each playing station, it is therefore possible to individually set up the cards of each suit by the manipulation of each of the card insigne bearing devices 16.

As shown in FIG. 2, the devices 16 in each of the rows is constructed in the form of a cylindrical drum, each 'ice row of devices 16 being rotatably supported upon an axle 18. The axles of the respective rows 14 of each group are supported at their ends on rail members 18' and 18" which are secured to the underside of the top wall 11 in depending relation. The drum is in each case supported so that the upper portion of its arcuate periphery will extend into the associated slot 14. This portion of the drum is provided with a radially extending finger member or tab 19 which may be manually utilized to rotate the drum within rotational limits established by the abutment of the tab against the sides of the slot 14. It will thus be seen that if the card insigne is placed on the left side of the finger 19 of the device 16 at the extreme left, the insigne will be obscured to view through the slot 14, when the finger 19 is against the left side of the slot. However, if the finger 19 is moved to the right side of the slot, the insigne thereon will be presented to a players view through the slot 14.

The drums which make up the respective insigne bearing devices 16 are not of solid construction, but are provided with cut out portions as indicated at 20 so that the center of gravity will be ollset with reference to the rotational axle 18, at a radial point such as indicated at 21. Thus movement of the drum by the finger 19 from a nonplaying position to a playing position of the insigne bearing device will cause this point of Weight concentration to move through a vertical axis such as indicated by the numeral 22. The drum will therefore be urged in opposite directions from the axis 22 and have a tendency to normally be retained in either of the positions to which it is operated manually. While utilization is made in this case of the force of gravity to urge the drum from its dead center position on the axis 22, spring or other means may be utilized for such purpose without departing from the concepts of my invention.

Locking means, as shown in FIG. 2 are provided for simultaneously locking the inactive drums in non-playing position. This is accomplished by providing on the drum periphery, at a point opposite the slot 14, a shoulder projection 23. Below the four playing stations, an inner plate structure 24 is slida bly supported by positioning edge margins thereof in receiving edge slots or guide notches 25 provided in supporting brackets 26. Planar movement of the plate structure will be permitted within limits established by an upstanding actuating lever 27, the upper end portion of this lever projecting through a slot 28 in the top wall 11. Midway of the slot is a projection stop member 29 which extends into the slot and provides a barrier for maintaining the lever 27 in a shifted position .at either end of the slot. As viewed in FIG. 1, movement of the lever 27 to the lowermost end of the slot places the plate structure 24 in a locking position, while movement of the lever to the opposite end of the slot places the plate structure 24 in unlocked position. The plate structure, below each row of devices 16 is provided with an elongate rib member 30 which is adapted in the locked position of the lever 27 to occupy the position as shown in full lines in FIG. 2, wherein it is in the path of movement of the shoulder projection 23, and as thus positioned becomes efliective to maintain the associated devices 16 against rotation to a position in which the card insigne will be displayed through the associated slot. With such an arrangement, the playing hands may be set up for the playing stations on the apparatus, and then by shifting the locking lever 27 to its full line position, all of the devices 16 which are not being used in the set up playing hands will be locked in an inactive position against movement.

With further reference to FIG. 2, those devices 16 which have been rotated so as to expose their associated card insigne will occupy a position in which their tabs 19 will extend as indicated at 19'. As the device 16 is moved from a playing position to a non-playing position, the tab 19 will occupy a position as shown at 19". It will be seen that in such position, the shoulder projection as shown at 23" will now abut against the opposite side of the adjacent rib member 30", and thus prevent its movement to the full limit position as previously occupied in a locked or non-active device, as shown by numeral 19. It will therefore be seen that, if a device is rotated to indicate the playing of a card, the device could then be rotated in an opposite direction to reestablish the visibility of this card in the hand Without interference by the locking device. When the hands have all been played, and it is desired to reset the same hands for repetition of the play or further instruction, it is a simple matter to reset all the hands simultaneously merely by picking up the apparatus and tilting it so that the centers of gravity may operate to move the devices 16 of the hands which are to be reset to playing positions.

Various modifications may suggest themselves to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of my invention, and, hence, I do not Wish to be restricted to the specific form shown or uses mentioned, except to the extent indicated in the appended claims, wherein various portions have been separated for clarity of reading and not for emphasis.

I claim:

1. Game playing apparatus of the character described,

comprising:

(a) a card game board having a plurality of playing stat-ions;

(b) rows of transversely aligned members at each playing station, said rows each being representative of a particular card suit, each member of a row carrying a single specific designating insigne of a card of the suit represented, and with the respective insigne of each row being similarly positioned in the row according to its corresponding value; and

() means supporting said members of each row for individual selective movement to a position of display and :a position of nondisplay of its suit designating insigne, whereby the cards of each suit in the players hand at each station may be correspondingly set up in similarly positioned rows.

2. Game playing apparatus of the character described,

comprising:

(a) a card game board having a plurality of playing stations;

( b) rows of aligned members at each playing station, said rows each being representative of a particular card suit, and each member of a row carrying a single specific designating insigne of :a card of the suit represented;

(c) means supporting said members for individual selective movement to a position of display and a position of nondisplay of its suit designating insigne; and

(d) means for releasably locking against movement all the members at each playing station that are in a nondisplay position.

3. Game playing apparatus of the character described,

comprising:

(a) a card game board having a plurality of playing stations;

(b) rows of aligned members at each playing station, said rows each being representative of a particular card suit, and each member of a row carrying a single specific designating insigne of a card of the suit represented;

(c) means supporting said members for individual selective movement to a position of display and a position of nondisplay of its suit designating insigne; and

(d) means for simultaneously releasably locking against movement the members in all of the playing stations that are in a nondisplay position.

4. Game playing apparatus of the character described, comprising:

(a) a card game playing board having a plurality of playing stations, the board at each station having a plurality of parallel slots respectively representative of a card suit;

(b) a plurality of coaxially aligned rotatable drums supported below said playing board at each slot with peripheral portions thereof being visible in the slot, each of said drums carrying a single insigne of a particular card of the suit represented by the slot; and

(c) projecting means carried by each of said drums extending through said slot, whereby each of said drums is digitally operable through limited rotation to positions of aligned visibility and nonvisibility of its insigne in said slot.

5. In card playing game apparatus having a plurality of playing stations, each of said stations including means selectable to indicate a playing hand and comprising:

(a) a Wall member having a surface opening;

(b) a drum having a card insigne on its periphery supported below said opening for rotational movement through a vertical dead center axis between positions respectively in which said insigne will be displayed in said opening, and displaced with respect to said opening; and

(c) said drum having a center of gravity offset with respect to the axis of rotation of the drum which is respectively positionable on opposite sides of said dead center axis to urge said drum towards said positions.

6. In card playing game apparatus having a plurality of playing stations, each of said stations including means selectable to indicate a playing hand and comprising:

(a) a tiltable wall member having a surface opening;

(b) a drum having a card insigne on its periphery;

(0) means supporting said drum below said opening for selective rotational movements through a vertical dead center axis to positions respectively in which said insigne is visible and nonvisible with respect to said opening; and

(d) said drum being weighted for movement by gravity respectively to said positions, and from the nonvisible position to the visible position of said insigne, when the wall member is tilted to a predetermined position.

7. In card playing game apparatus having a plurality of playing stations, each of said stations including means selectable to indicate a playing hand and comprising:

(a) a wall member having a surface opening;

(-b) a drum having a card insigne on its periphery,

said drum being pivoted below said opening for rctative movements to a playing position with the insigne visible in the opening and a nonplaying position in which the insigne is not visible in the opene;

(e) a projection at the periphery of said drum opposite said opening; and

(d) a locking member having a part movable to a locking position and a nonlocking position with respect to said projection, said part in nonlocking position permitting selective movements of said drum to playing and nonplaying position, but upon movement from a nonlocking position, subsequent to placing the drum in a nonplaying position, acting to dispose said part in a holding position in the path of travel of said projection.

8. In card playing game apparatus:

(a) a wall member having a surface opening;

(b) a drum rotatably supported below said opening;

(c) an actuator carried by said drum extending into said opening and being movable from one side to the other of the opening to limit rotational movement of the drum;

(d) a projection at the drum periphery opposite said finger; and

(e) a locking part selectively movable into and out of a locking position in which said part is disposed in the path of travel of said projection and opposes movement of said drum away from one limit of its movement.

9. Game playing apparatus of the character described,

comprising:

(a) a card game board having a plurality of playing stations;

(b) rows of aligned members at each playing station, said rows each being representative of a particular card suit, and each member of a row carrying a single specific designating insigne of a card of the suit represented;

(c) means supporting said members for individual selective rotative movement through a vertical dead center axis to positions of display and non-display of their suit designating insigne;

(d) means urging each of said members respectively to said positions, upon movement past said axis; and

(e) means for simultaneously releasably locking against movement the members in all of the playing stations that are in a non-display position, whereby the unlocked members in display positions represent a players hand and :are selectively movable to nondisplay positions during play, and at the conclusion of the game are returnable to their display positions to reset the played hands. 10. Game playing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the urging means is the force of gravity, and the 10 unlocked members are returnable from their non-display positions to display position by tilting of the game board to a predetermined position.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,312,593 3/ 1943 Shaw 35 8.2

FOREIGN PATENTS 676,084 5/ 1939 Germany.

EUGENE R. CAPOZIO, Primary Examiner.

R. E. KLEIN, Assistant Examiner. 

1. GAME PLAYING APPARATUS OF THE CHARACTER DESCRIBED, COMPRISING: (A) A CARD GAME BOARD HAVING A PLURALITY OF PLAYING STATIONS; (B) ROWS OF TRANSVERSELY ALIGNED MEMBERS AT EACH PLAYING STATION, SAID ROWS EACH BEING REPRESENTATIVE OF A PARTICULAR CARD SUIT, EACH MEMBER OF A ROW CARRYING A SINGLE SPECIFIC DESIGNATIN INSIGNE OF A CARD OF THE SUIT REPRESENTED, AND WITH THE RESPECTIVE INSIGNE OF EACH ROW BEING SIMILARLY POSITIONED IN THE ROW ACCORDING TO ITS CORRESPONDING VALUE; AND (C) MEANS SUPPORTING SAID MEMBERS TO EACH ROW FOR INDIVIDUAL SELECTIVE MOVEMENT TO A POSITION OF DISPLAY AND A POSITION OF NONDISPLAY OF ITS SUIT DESIGNATING INSIGNE, WHEREBY THE CARDS OF EACH SUIT IN THE PLAYER''S HAND AT EACH STATION MAY BE CORRESPONDINGLY SET UP IN SIMILARLY POSITIONED ROWS. 